Mitt Romney, in his first speech from the well of the U.S. Senate, offered a veiled criticism of President Trump’s foreign policy, urging fidelity to traditional American allies in Europe and Asia and vigilance toward adversaries China and Russia.
On the heels of Trump’s joint news conference with outgoing British Prime Minister Theresa May in London, Romney, a Utah Republican elected last year, made the case for strengthening U.S. ties across the Atlantic and said Washington’s alliances — rather than being an outdated drain on domestic resources — provide a bulwark against a rising China and diminished though very troublesome Russia.
“It is in the United States’ most vital interest to see a strong NATO, a strong Europe, stronger ties with the free nations of Asia and the subcontinent, and with every free country. We need to hold our friends closer, not neglect them or drive them away,” Romney said. “These alliances are a key advantage we have over China: America has many friends, China has very few.”
Trump, who has moved to reorient U.S. foreign policy away from a reliance on broad alliances and more toward bilateral relations with individual nations, has spoken disparagingly of the U.S. role in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Regarding Moscow, Trump has pointedly declined to criticize strongman Vladimir Putin or acknowledge Russia as a bad actor, although his administration has in some instances implemented tougher policies than Barack Obama, the president’s predecessor.
In Romney’s speech, almost exclusively devoted to foreign policy, he offered fresh warnings about Russia that echoed comments pushing Trump, and especially Democrats, to acknowledge that Moscow is a bad actor. “As it falls further behind, we must expect Russia’s inevitable desperation to lead to further and more aberrant conduct,” Romney said.
Trump and Romney, the 2012 GOP presidential nominee who some Never Trump Republicans had hoped might challenge the president in the 2020 GOP primary, are occasional rivals who have sparred over foreign and domestic policy as the president assumed command of the Republican Party.
Romney lauded Trump for cracking down on China, expressing support for the president’s wielding of tariffs to pressure Beijing to stop flouting international trade regulations and treating U.S. exports unfairly. In endorsing Trump’s strategy of raising tariffs on Chinese imports in a bid to influence Beijing’s behavior, Romney set him apart from many Republicans on Capitol Hill who wary to outright opposed to this approach.
But Romney’s approach differs from Trump’s. The senator views forging and maintaining strong alliances as the most effective strategy for countering Beijing.
